KINETICS OF GLYCOLYSIS OF POLY(ETHYLENE-TEREPHTHALATE) MELTS

The reaction of poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET) melts with ethylene glycol was examined in a pressure reactor at temperatures above 245 degrees C. The reaction rate was found to depend on temperature and on the concentrations of liquid ethylene glycol and of ethylene diester groups in the polymer. A kinetic model proposed for the initial period of the reaction was found to be consistent with experimental data. It was found that internal catalysis by ethylene glycol does not play an important role in the glycolytic depolymerization of PET. The rate constants for glycolysis were calculated for three different temperatures, yielding an activation energy of 92 kJ/mol. Zinc salts, which have a catalytic effect on glycolysis of PET below 245 degrees C, do not appear to influence glycolysis rates above that temperature. (C) 1994 John Wiley and Sons, Inc.